If mileage is evenly spaced between oil changes, then it was driven regularly, just a little at a time. A long period of inactivity indicates something worth investigating further. Despite the low miles, I’d take it to a mechanic you trust for a prepurchase inspection. Tell the dealer what you are doing so that he will let you take the car for several hours.
With the shortage of vehicles and the outrages prices I doubt if a dealer is going to let someone take a vehicle for several hours . Especially a Mustang GT .
The only benefit of buying a used car with low mileage is that the theoretical maximum remaining life will be higher. You will still have to do maintenance and repairs (or pay to have them done professionally) which a newer car would not require.
That’s not to say that low mileage should be avoided–just that sometimes it isn’t worth paying extra for. You didn’t mention what the asking price is for this vehicle, so we cannot tell you if it’s a good deal or not.
The person should not give that amount because someone will always say ’ You paid too much '.
The correct price for any used vehicle is the selling price and the price you are willing to pay match then there you go .
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I don’t know about the older ones, but the 2018 Mustang GT I had recommended once a year oil changes for the maintenance schedule. Then again, it held like 8-10 quarts of oil in the pan
… but you advocate going more than one year (likely at least 15 months in this case) between oil changes?
My problem became that the loan payments just weren’t worth it. The money I spent on monthly payments soon turned into “Why am I paying this much for a car that is only good to drive a few months out of the year?”. I loved driving it, but the factory tires were not rated very well for anything besides dry conditions- I couldn’t even keep good traction after washing the thing, didn’t even want to know what snow driving would be like.
The OP stated that the car had all of its oil changes done on time.
But, to answer your question, you’re talking to a guy who changed the oil in my CX-7 every 4 to 6 months(depended on Ohio weather) due to time rather than miles because the owner’s manual said to change the oil every 4 months.I didn’t feel comfortable waiting the 12 months for an o/c on the Mustang, but figured Ford knew what they were doing.
I can’t speak for you, but I can recall countless instances in this forum where people claimed that their vehicle had been “well-maintained”, or that all of its maintenance had been done “on time”. Unfortunately, as we have seen time and time again in this forum, a huge percentage of the people posting about car problems don’t take elapsed time into consideration when they make those statements, but instead them focus solely on odometer mileage. Those are the ones who wind up with VVT problems, early oil-burning, and other lubrication-related issues.
I am not sure if the OP already knows about the elapsed time between oil changes on this particular vehicle, but I strongly suggest that he “drill down” in its service records to determine just how much time typically elapsed between oil changes.
I mostly stick to this sub-forum these days, but have been around for quite some time on the forums in general. I guess I’m just playing devil’s advocate here mostly because the car isn’t something people drive on a daily basis. Either one of us could be right in this case and, ultimately, it comes down to whether the OP buys the car or someone beats him to it.
If the car has had at least 5 oil changes I wouldn’t be concerned. An engine with a high-capacity oil sump is not going to sludge like a 4-cylinder daily driven SUV with a 4 1/2-quart capacity.
You haven’t told us what type of dealer this is. If it is a new car dealership with some trade-ins and most of their used cars are only a couple years old, I’d be much more inclined to buy it. New car dealers only keep the “cream of the crop” trade-ins because stake their reputation on those used cars. If it is at all questionable, it goes to wholesale.
Some dealers have a secondary used car lot away from the main dealership and not under their name to sell semi-premium used cars and trade-ins. Some they got in trade, some from wholesalers or auctions. But usually they are a little better than average.
If this was a trade-in, the dealer should be able to tell you a little about the previous owners. They may not be inclined to give you contact info but if they tell you it was an older person, then that would also indicate a better vehicle. It could be that the reason for low miles is that it wasn’t driven everyday, but when it was driven, it was on trips long enough to get the vehicle fully warmed up and maybe a lot of road miles.
But if the dealer is one of those Joe Smuckatellies used cars, we tote the note, types that work out of a doublewide on a small lot with a dozen or so cars, then run from this dealership.
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Low mileage is an important consideration BUT only with a history.
For example, a low mileage Cadillac or Lincoln sedan typically owned by a Senior Citizen makes perfect sense and was probably never driven in snow, at night or over 50 MPH and had all the maintenance done at the dealer.
On the other hand a low mileage F150 which is commonly used as a Work vehicle is more questionable. Not impossible but questionable.
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I echo the suggestions of those who say go buy the car. You obviously want it as you make a case for why it could be a good buy to counter negative comments.
Maybe a CarFAx would show a previous owner’s name? Or the dealer might be willing to provide that information if it is a vehicle they took in trade.
You have to watch Smuckatellie and his cousins. I once traded a Crown Vic to a KC Ford dealer and, a few weeks later, spotted it on one of those independent lots. Curious, I called about it. It was owned by a KS farmer, driven lightly, and a host of other untruths. The only part of the whole story was that I lived in KS. Then, a friend bought it, and I heard the whole story again. He was still happy with it and was driving it when he moved away.
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Don’t worry about lack of use being a problem unless it was sitting for over a year unused. Even if that’s the case so the power steering pump gasket starts leaking so just replace it. The previous owners probably had regular cars to drive to and from work that got better fuel economy. Even if they changed the oil every 8000 miles as long as it wasn’t more than that so the oil would sludge and ruin the valve stem seals then figure more engine wear so figure 40k miles instead of 25k miles of equivalent engine wear. 40k miles is still not bad.